Q & A: Tony Kathreptis and Peter Rousakis of Caracara Mexican Grill

Before you even enter Caracara Mexican Grill at 354 Main St. in Farmingdale, you can hear the festive mood.

Co-owners Peter Rousakis and Tony Kathreptis funnel lively salsa music onto the sidewalk and the front area consists of brightly-colored outdoor seating along the street.

Once you enter the restaurant, the ambiance falls somewhere between rustic and modern, with candles glowing along one wall and eight Andy Warhol-type 3D portraits of Mexico’s Frida Kahlo backlit in different colors with a caracara bird sitting in different positions. The entire room is lit in vivid orange, blue, yellow, and red lights to set the tempo.

The restaurant’s name comes from the crested caracara, the national bird of Mexico. Caracara also means face-to-face in Spanish.

What makes Caracara different?
Kathreptis: Caracara Mexican Grill is the only restaurant in Farmingdale serving authentic, upscale Mexican food in a comfortable setting. Our own chef Richard Caruso has a very substantial background and resume, having cooked at Pelea Mexicana, Hill Country Barbecue, and Rosa Mexicano in Manhattan. This isn’t Tex-Mex. Our chef puts a lot of preparation into his moles and all of our entrees are freshly-prepared. Our goal is to provide an intimate, authentic menu with crowd-pleasing favorites. We spent six and a half months getting the restaurant ready, hiring a contractor to fulfill our vision of what we wanted, and having a local artist design the Frida Kahlo lighting portraits. Our tequila lounge features 45 premium tequilas and we also serve our signature Caracara Sangria by the glass or pitcher.

How is business in this economy?
Rousakis: We’re attracting a lot of customers and garnering some great reviews in the local papers. It’s been very good. We’ve already had a rehearsal dinner for a wedding couple getting married at St. Kilian Church and we’ve had a for the author Richard Rose.

What is the best/worst thing about running a business on Main Street?
Kathreptis: We’re thrilled to be on Main Street in Farmingdale. We did look at many other sites on the North Shore and South Shore, Hempstead Turnpike, and even Queens but we chose Farmingdale due to its history and reputation, due to Mayor Starkie’s vision plan of a resurgent Main Street and to fulfill a niche that didn’t exist.

What is your busiest time of the year?
Rousakis: We've been doing very well this summer having customers sit outside to dine. But we feel that it will become even busier in the fall and during football season. We’re very hopeful, too, with the building of a new hotel nearby that will attract a lot of business. And we might add live music in the future.

What is the most rewarding part of being part of the Farmingdale community?
Kathreptis: The Mayor and entire board have been by to visit us and have a meal and they’ve been very supportive to us and our effort. We even had a ribbon-cutting ceremony with Nassau County Legislator Joe Belisi. It’s been nice to hire local people to work at our restaurant. The other restaurant and store owners in Farmingdale are very kind too.

What is your most popular dish?
Rousakis: Our tableside guacamole is very popular as is our plaza tacos and enchiladas. Of course we also offer delicious traditional and contemporary Mexican fare, such as burritos, tacos, quesadillas, along with margaritas, mojitos, and sangria. At brunch on Sunday we offer both Bloody Mary and Bloody Maria that is made with tequila instead.

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